Following UK government guidance, JMAH Halifax has taken the unprecedented move to suspend all congregational services and activities. This is a decision that was not taken lightly and has been done to prevent the further spread of the coronavirus in the UK.
Figures show the number of confirmed infections have surpassed 1,950, with 71 people now having died from Covid-19 in the UK (as of 18th Mar 2020). All mosque and faith institutes have a duty of care towards their communities. The preservation of life takes precedence over everything else and for this reason, we are cancelling all major activities at the mosques. This includes:
• Jumu’ah prayers
• Daily salah (congregational prayers)
• Madrassah and educational classes
• Talks, conferences and other regular lectures
Updates on the situation can be found on our website : www.jmahdawah.org and facebook page.
Ultimately we turn to God and seek His protection in all matters but this includes taking all the necessary precautions to protect ourselves and others. It is therefore imperative that we follow the advice of the medical authorities and do everything we can to delay the spread of the virus. This will help to prevent the overloading of our medical services so that they can save more lives as well as give us more time to find a vaccine, God willing.
We have taken this decision after discussing the situation with scholars and medical experts and deem it necessary due to the size of the congregation, which poses a serious risk to the spread of the virus.
In history, situations like this have occurred and we have clear guidance from the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) about quarantine circumstances. For this reason, we ask everyone to please pray salah (prayers) at home. This includes jumuah, which should be replaced with the normal dhuhr (mid-day prayer consisting of 4 rakat) prayer.
We also have a responsibility to refrain from harming others through actions such as panic buying. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said:
“There should be neither harm nor reciprocating harm.”
This is a test for us all and we would like to remind the community to be patient and calm during this period. It is not a time for hysteria, but rather a time to seek the vulnerable and offer support.
“And We will surely test you with something of fear and hunger and a loss of wealth and lives and fruits, but give good tidings to the patient” [Al Quran:155]
This has been a very difficult decision for us and we hope that everyone can understand the severity of the situation for us to take these extreme measures.
We pray that Allah سبحانه و تعالى protects us all through these testing times. Ameen.
End.